Entertainment / TIFF 2021: The Top South Asian Talent You’ll See At The Toronto International Film Festival

TIFF 2021: The Top South Asian Talent You’ll See At The Toronto International Film Festival

Entertainment Sep 09, 2021

by Matthew Currie

The Toronto International Film Festival starts today giving us 10 days filled with movies from all over the world. By restarting their in-person screenings (on a limited bases) and continuing their digital presentations from last year due to COVID, we are thrilled to continue to bring you the latest from TIFF 2021 starting with our annual overview of the top South Asian talent that will be making their name on the festival circuit.

An offbeat horror thriller starring Riz Ahmed and a Canadian-made TV series that might just be the new Schitt’s Creek headline TIFF 2021’s top South Asian content.

This pandemic of ours has raged on for much longer than anyone anticipated, and so it is that the Toronto International Film Festival presents its second COVID-era edition, running from Thursday, September 9, to Saturday, September 18. Once again, it will be a hybrid affair — a mix of in-person and virtual screenings. (Click here for more info on COVID protocols, tickets, etc.) But much as the new pandemic reality has changed things, one thing that remains the same is that there will be a slew of South Asian talent on display.

Here’s our roundup of the flicks to watch out for at this year’s fest.

Ali & Ava

Recently seen in Netflix’s breakout fantasy series Sweet Tooth, Adil Akhtar heads up this tender, bittersweet British drama about the unlikely romance that sparks between an apartment landlord (Akhtar) and an Irish schoolteacher (Claire Rushbrook), who’s also a single mother of five. Bonding over their shared passion for music during an impromptu car ride, the somewhat-star-crossed duo find themselves drawn to each other — in spite of his failing marriage, her myriad adolescent offspring and the fact that, before meeting by chance, the two of them have lived very different lives.

The Electrical Life of Louis Wain

Akhtar also occupies a key role in one of the festival’s most-buzzed dramas — the true story of the Victorian-era artist (played here by Sherlock’s Benedict Cumberbatch) whose cat paintings are often credited for Western civilization’s embrace of the feline as a beloved pet. Here, we watch as the troubled painter slowly falls in love with a governess (The Crown’s Claire Foy) who will change his life.

A Night of Knowing Nothing

Up-and-comer Payal Kapadia picked up the top documentary prize at this past Cannes for her debut feature, described as “a fever dream of impossible love tied to a broader reflection on contemporary India.” Centring on the letters sent from an unnamed woman to her estranged lover, the film “offers a rich and sensual interplay between sound and image” that will break your heart while plumbing the depths of a tortured soul.

Charlotte

This star-studded animated feature from Canadian co-directors Tahir Rana and Eric Warin recounts the true story of Charlotte Salomon, a young Jewish painter who channelled the profound horrors of life during Second World War-era Germany and France into a stunning visual autobiography, left behind before her death at Auschwitz at age 26. Keira Knightley voices Charlotte, joined by the A-list likes of Mark Strong, Brenda Blethyn, Helen McCrory, Sophie Okonedo, Eddie Marsan, Jim Broadbent and Sam Claflin.

Encounter

The last film Riz Ahmed brought to TIFF, 2019’s Sound of Metal, earned him an Oscar nom. This time, this rising British star is plying his craft to a very different but no less poignant sort of tale. He plays a U.S. Marine who becomes convinced there’s an alien invasion afoot — parasitic bugs that are attaching themselves to humans and controlling our minds. Desperate to save his two sons from the coming apocalypse — even if it means kidnapping them from his estranged wife — our hero must also contend with the garden-variety racism, misunderstanding and distrust that divides humanity on a daily basis. Oscar-winner Octavia Spencer also stars.

Scarborough

Co-directors Rich Williamson and Shasha Nakhai adapt Catherine Hernandez’s bittersweet novel about three youngsters who find strength and hope in friendship as they struggle through a life of poverty, abuse and discrimination in the titular Ontario city. Helping this hard-luck trio along the way is their teacher Ms. Hina, played by Canadian standup comic Aliya Kanani.

Dug Dug

Director Ritwik Pareek makes an auspicious debut with this stylish, satirical drama that kicks into gear when a middle-aged alcoholic named Thakur crashes his motorcycle on a remote backroad in India — an accident which kills him in particularly gruesome fashion. The thing is, the motorcycle itself keeps disappearing from the police evidence lockup and mysteriously showing up at the site of the crash. And eventually, this inspires the locals to start believing Thakur’s spirit is possessing his beloved bike — and that entreating it with offerings of Thakur’s favourite booze will bring good fortune. Just like that, a new religion is born.

Quickening

Writer-director Haya Waseem’s first feature centres on Sheila (Arooj Azeem), a Pakistani-Canadian university student who tries to reconcile the expectations of her parents (played by the actress’s own mom and dad), the desire to fit in with her white peers and her own still-forming sense of who she is, what she wants and her place in the world. It’s a burden that’s almost too much to bear at the best of times, but made worse when she falls for the wrong boy, who breaks up with her after taking her virginity, sending her into a spiral — increasingly unmoored from her friends, family and community.

Paka (River of Blood)

A tale of revenge and forbidden love plays out in the forests of Kerala, as two clans that have been feuding for generations continue the violence that’s been passed down to them. One young man (Basil Paulose) who falls for a girl (Vinitha Koshy) from the wrong side of the river is intent on letting the old ways die, but the pull of this bloody family legacy may be too great for anyone to escape.

Sort Of

A new comedy premiering in TIFF’s “Primetime” television showcase follows a gender-fluid millennial named Sabi (played by series co-creator Bilal Baig) struggling with life, love, family and career in modern-day Toronto. The youngest member of a large Pakistani family, the witty, sardonic Sabi splits their time between tending bar at an LGBTQ+ hangout and serving as nanny to two privileged kids. With just about every aspect of their life — romantic, professional and otherwise — in transition, Sabi gets a chance to shake things up by moving to Berlin, but a fateful accident compels them to face their problems at home rather than run from them. After its festival premiere, the show will premiere on streaming service CBC and CBC Gem in Canada and HBO Max in the U.S.

Main Image Photo Credit: www.tiff.net

Matthew Currie

Author

A long-standing entertainment journalist, Currie is a graduate of the Professional Writing program at Toronto’s York University. He has spent the past number of years working as a freelancer for ANOKHI and for diverse publications such as Sharp, TV Week, CAA’s Westworld and BC Business. Currie ...

COMMENTS

These Are The 9 Korean Dramas That Bollywood Can't Get Enough Of

Check Out These August 2021 Movies From Bollywood & Beyond!

Abhay Deol & The Cast Of Disney's "Spin" Tells Us Why It's Better To Let Your Kids Chase Their Own Dreams

One-On-One With 'Sweet Tooth' Star Aliza Vellani

Akshay Kumar Tells Us Why His Latest Film “Bell Bottom” Is The Spy Thriller Bollywood Needs Right Now

Check Out These Sept 2021 Movies From Bollywood And Beyond!

TIFF 2021: Director Nithin Lukose Tells Us How His Grandmother's Stories Fuelled His Film "Paka (River of Blood)"

Check Out These Oct 2021 Movies From Bollywood And Beyond!

From The Slums To The Stage: “Call Me Dancer” Documentary Shares The Unique Journey Of Ballet Dancer Manish Chauhan

TIFF 2021: “Sort Of” Star/Co-Creator Bilal Baig Embraces The Power Of Trans Representation In Their Barrier-Breaking CBC Comedy

The Team Behind "Emergence: Out Of The Shadows" Tell Us Why Parents Of LGBTQ+ Kids Need To Share Their Stories Too

TIFF 2021: One-On-One With Aliya Kanani Who Shines In Award-Winning Indie "Scarborough"

TIFF 2021: The Top South Asian Talent You’ll See At The Toronto International Film Festival

by Matthew Currie

Matthew Currie

COMMENTS

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE